Chapter 4
'Summary' Chapter four starts out with the "littluns" building sand castles along the shore and playing around having a good time. Later on, Roger began to throw rocks at a "littlun", Henry, but Roger doesn't dare throw the rocks within a six yard diameter of Henry because he has a taboo of the old life where he knows he would be punished for such actions. Also in the chapter, Henry tries to control these small creatures he finds in the sea and begins to enjoy having power and controlling these little creatures. Jack and his hunters leave the fire, and go off to paint their faces so that they can hunt for the pig because Jack believes it will help them be disguised. In chapter four, the first sign of adults was shown when Ralph spots a ship in the sea. Ralph believes that the ship will rescue them because it should see their smoke signal, but it turns out that Jack and the hunters left the fire and it went out. Ralph and Piggy try to run up the mountain to light the fire, but by this time it is already too late and the ship had passed. When Jack returns to the camp he is excited because he managed to kill a pig but Ralph flips out at him for worrying about killing a pig over keeping a fire going so that they can get rescued. 'Literary Analysis' In Chapter four of Lord of the Flies, allegory is deeply used. Allegory is what author use to represent a story, poem, or picture that can be interpreted to reveal a hidden meaning, typically a moral or political one. The chapter title, Long Hair and Painted Faces has a hidden meaning. The Long hair represents civilization. Piggy who is bald due to his incapability to grow hair is the most civilized. Jack on the other hand, has the longest hair out of everyone on the island, has become a complete Savage. In Chapter four, the pig that jack kills is a symbol of power as well as accomplishment. Symbolism is the use of symbols to signify ideas and qualities by giving them symbolic meanings that are different from their literal sense. When Jack kills the pig, he feels like he is complete because he had failed to kill the pig in the past. When Jack brings the pig back to the group to show everyone he was able to get them food, he gains a lot of power over Ralph, who does not hunt. Characterization is used by Golding in Lord of the Flies. Characterization is the process by which the writer reveals the personality of a character. Ralph is characterized by Golding as a golden boy. Ralph shows a great sign of leadership and helps keep the group in order. Ralph tries to keep everyone civilized until the day when they hopefully get rescued. Jack is the antagonist of the story. Jack is a very scary kid who is obsessed with killing a pig and tries to compete with Ralph for power. Ralph is very uncivilized and not well mannered. Piggy is the most civilized boy on the island. Piggy is also the most intelligent boy there but due to his chubbiness, his ideas are often ignored and he gets picked on. Simon is a very shy kid who only comes t help once in a while. Simon is shown to fit in with nature and enjoys the woods, and he is also very kind. There is a huge conflict introduced in chapter four between Jack and Ralph. Ralph begins to yell and get angry at Jack because he left the fire and it went out. Ralph complains that if Jack were to have kept the fire going, they would have been saved by the ship that passed. Also, Ralph (the protagonist) and Jack (the antagonist) both have a conflict between them to compete for power over the other. 'Literary Devices' Foreshadowing is a major literary device used in Lord of the Flies. Foreshadowing is when a writer gives hints as to what is to come in the book. In chapter four, the scene where Roger is throwing rocks near Henry and receives pleasure from doing this may be foreshadowing that he has an inner beast within him that we may soon see. Imagery is another literary device used in Lord of the Flies. Imagery is when the author uses very descriptive words to allow the reader to picture the scene in their head. Golding wrote, " He made little runnels that the tide filled and tried to crowd them with creatures. He became absorbed beyond mere happiness as he felt himself exercising control over living things. Driven back by the tide, his footprints became bays in which they were trapped and gave him the illusion of mastery (Golding 61.)" This scene written by Golding allows the reader to picture Henry, a little boy, having fun as he controls little creatures. Simile is another literary device used in Lord of the Flies. Simile is used by an author to compare to objects using like or as which allows the reader to understand what an object is like. " At midday the illusions merged into the sky and there the sun gazed down like an angry eye (Golding 58.)" This quote is a simile because it compares the sun to an angry eye by using like. 'Quotations' "Roger gathered a handful of stones and began to throw them. Yet there was a space round Henry, perhaps six yards in diameter, into which he dare not throw. Here, invisible yet strong, was the taboo of an old life (Golding 62.)" "Beside the pool his sinewy body held up a mask that drew their eyes and appalled them. He began to dance and his laughter became a bloodthirsty snarling (Golding 64.)" "Kill the pig. Cut her throat. Bash her in (Golding 75.)"